Watch out for serving sizes!

Well, this one was a doozy. I should REALLY know better, but this seems to happen a lot anyway, and I know I'm not the only one out there that slips up this way. I think it's a continual struggle to remember to check out calories and portion sizes on foods, especially pre-packaged ones, BEFORE you eat them!!!

The best thing to do really is to plan out your meals for the day ahead of time, at least the night before. Ideally you should do this ahead of time for the whole week, such as, on Sunday nights. Or for me, my WeightWatchers "week" starts on Saturday (the day I weigh in and my points reset). So I should be planning on Saturday morning probably, since I'm a terrible weekend over-eater, and I need to work on that. But I digress.

The point is, we busy people know that is very hard to get your meals planned out ahead of time (or to plan out anything in advance really!) on a consistent basis.

So just wanted to share what the doozy was before I close. I tried this salad:


I usually always check the nutritional info in the store, including the serving size, before I buy an item. But this time I was in a hurry (another fatal, common mistake!) and I only glanced at the calories and not the serving size. Then when I dished it out for my lunch, I assumed it was like another Fresh Express Salad where the serving size is about 2 servings per bag, so I just halved it. Bad idea! Check out how it computes:

Bag/Serving Size
11.4 oz., about 4 servings

Nutritional Information

Serving Size About 2.5 cups Salad, 2 tbsp dressing, 5 cherries and 10 won ton strips
Amount Per Serving
Calories 120 Calories from Fat 45
% Daily Value
Total Fat 5g 15%
Saturated Fat 1.5g 8%
Trans Fat 0g
Cholesterol 0mg 0%
Sodium 380mg 16%
Total Carbohydrate 17g 6%
Dietary Fiber 2g 9%
Sugars 8g
Protein 3g
Vitamin A 45% Vitamin C 25%
Calcium 2% Iron 6%
Vitamin K 0% Folic Acid 0%
Magnesium 0% Folate 0%

So there are supposed to be 4 servings in there, of 2.5 cups each (which doesn't really seem possible). So if you eat half the bag, that would be about 5 cups of salad for 240 calories, 10g fat, and 4g fiber. Which is 5 points by WW standards, which is ok for a typical lunch since I get 21 points per day. But even half the bag was a puny portion if you ask me, and that was supposed to be 2 servings!

Well I can't trust the math from Fresh Express so I won't be buying this again, though it was tasty. I'd rather eat something that gives me more for the 5 points. Better yet, I (and you!) can create my own version of this salad for the same amount of points but with more variety of ingredients AND some protein (shredded chicken). Here's how:

Asian Supreme Salad (Redux)
1 Serving, 5 points
  • 2 c. romaine lettuce, chopped
  • 1 c. carrots, shredded
  • 1/2 c. canned mandarin oranges (juice packed, drained)
  • 1/2 c. sugar snap peas, chopped
  • 2 scallions, chopped
  • 1/2 c. bean sprouts
  • 1/2 cooked boneless, skinless chicken breast (shredded)
  • 1/4 c. La Choy Crispy Rice Noodles
  • 1 serving (10 sprays) Newman's Own Asian Sesame Natural Salad Mist
Directions: Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and enjoy!

The only problem is, it takes a lot of time! But it would be worth it.

0 comments:

Post a Comment